Homework: Hellenistic Anatomy and Physiology
Guidelines
The Alexandrian anatomists and physiologists Herophilus and Erasistratus are remembered for their practice of dissection and, possibly, vivisection. Today medical students in their first year are introduced to human anatomy by dissecting a cadaver. The practice of performing operations on live animals for the purpose of experimentation or scientific research, vivisection, remains controversial.
Length: 4 paragraphs maximum 1,000 words
Read the following two articles:
J.F. Dobson "Vivisection" Proceedings Royal Society on Medicine 18 (1925), 25-32
Heinrich Von Staden "The Discovery of the Human Body: Human Dissection and its Cultural Contexts in Ancient Greece," Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine 65 (1992) 223-241.
Answer the following four questions when you have completed the articles.
o What were Celsus and Tertullian's objections to vivisection?
o What were the cultural factors that served as obstacles to dissection and vivisection for the presocratic and classical Greek natural philosophers?
o What were the political and social circumstances in Alexandria in the 3rd century that "emboldened Herophilus to overcome the pressures of cultural traditions and initiate systematic human dissection?
o What factors account for the abrupt halt of dissection in Alexandria?
Format your homework according to the following formatting requirements:
o The answer should be typed, using Times New Roman font (size 12), double spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides.
o The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the homework, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
o Also include a reference page. The Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.